Where You Can Find Me by Fiona Cole

15

The next morningJack stayed for breakfast. He even made it. He made the best scrambled eggs and toast I had ever had. I think the fact that he didn’t have a shirt on made it taste much better than any other breakfast. I sat at the table and ogled his chest. It had a light dusting of hair, just enough to make it manly. He didn’t have an insane twelve-pack of abs but a definable six with those magical side muscles that pointed me in the direction of the happiness that hung between his legs. Good god, the man was delicious.

“I’ll have to leave once breakfast is done. I am meeting Grayson later to check out another contact.” He dished out the food onto plates and brought them to the table, sitting down to eat.

“So when do I get to meet this elusive Grayson?” Jack’s fork froze on its ascent to his mouth for a second.

He avoided eye contact as he murmured a quick, “Sometime soon, I’m sure.”

I set my fork down and confronted him. He acted strange every time I asked about meeting his friend, and I tried to have enough confidence to hope it wasn’t me, but in all honesty, I struggled to keep thinking that. “What’s up with you not wanting me to meet Grayson?”

He looked up with his eyebrows lowered in a look of denial. “I never said I didn’t want you to meet him.”

“No. You just tense up and act evasive every time I bring up meeting him. I mean, if you don’t want me to meet him or you want to keep our relationship separate, then just let me know. I know we just really took the next step, and maybe I’m thinking too much. You haven’t met Evie yet, but I want you to. And maybe this is just one-sided, and I’ve managed to—”

Jack put his finger against my lips to stop me from talking. “Luella. Stop. I don’t want to keep you separate from my life. Stop overthinking this.” He removed his finger and leaned forward to peck my lips. He sat back as he rubbed his hand over his hair and down his face, taking a deep breath. He seemed to be considering his words, and I began to worry. “It’s not that I don’t want you to meet Grayson; he’s my best friend. He is more than that; he’s my brother, and I trust him with everything, including my life. He’s saved it enough times.” Taking a deep breath, he looked up at me and seemed to have decided to tell me something I may not like. I took my own deep breath and braced myself for the worst. “I know we talked about how we hooked up at the bar and how out of the norm it was for us. But that doesn’t mean I have been celibate or in a relationship every time I have sex.”

I nodded my head slowly and tried to control my widening eyes. I didn’t want him to back down from what he wanted to say just because my face couldn’t control the confusion and worry. “Okaaay.”

“Shit. I don’t even know why I’m telling you this. Maybe it doesn’t need to be said.” He broke eye contact and shook his head as though trying to clear it. “Basically, Grayson knows about my sexual exploits and … and I just don’t want you to meet him and for him to expect more from you than either of us is prepared for. He’s very forward.”

I was pretty sure my eyebrows rose to my hairline because I couldn’t understand what he was saying. He noticed my confusion and leveled a stare at me. “Grayson and I have shared a lot of women in the past. It’s a common thing. I didn’t want him to meet you and say something without you understanding that. At the same time, I didn’t want to tell you that and freak you out and make you think I’m some kind of manwhore.”

I watched him say it all calmly. I stared at him for a bit as I dragged my fingers back and forth across my lips, processing what he said. After some thought, I decided to let it go. I was more curious than anything. So he had all kinds of crazy sex. As long as he didn’t have it with others while he was with me, then I didn’t care. After a long pause, where he began to look a little panicked by my silence, I fell back on my usual reaction: awkward humor.

“So … is Grayson hot?” One eyebrow rose as he tilted his head to the side. “I mean, if I’m going to imagine you having a threesome and insert myself in that mental image, then I need to make sure the other guy is hot.”

Jack’s head fell back as deep laughter came from his shaking chest. It vibrated across the room and settled around me. His laugh made me feel warm and happy. I loved the way his mouth stretched wide, showing the lines around his mouth. He finally got himself under control and looked at me with humor lingering in his eyes. I rested my elbow on the table and placed my chin in my hand. “I’m glad you find me so funny.”

“Lu, you are a surprise at every turn. Here I am sweating bullets about what you’ll think of me, and you’re over there imagining having a threesome with Grayson.” I just shrugged my shoulders shamelessly. “Hey, baby. Whatever you want.”

We both laughed a little more before I asked him to tell me more about Grayson.

“Well, like I said, he’s more like a brother than anything. We’ve been through a lot together while we were in the military. He always supported me. There were times when I struggled with my duties as a sniper, but Grayson, Grayson loved it. He had that mentality of doing what needed to be done, so it didn’t bother him. He would try and help me see it that way when I struggled. He enjoyed being a sniper. I think it was hard for him when he got out. That was when I moved here, and I was able to help support him. He never really talked about why he struggled so much, but after a year or so, he managed to push through. I mean, we all adjust differently. He hit another rough patch when his mom died three years ago. But we stuck it out. Part of me thought that was going to be it for him. That would be the straw that broke the camel’s back. His anger would get the best of him, but I was always able to talk him down, and once the company started taking off, he was able to focus on that.”

“He sounds like a great guy. You both are lucky to have that friendship and brotherly bond.”

“Definitely. He’s pulled my ass out of the fire more times than I can count. I mean, yesterday, he stopped me from letting my temper get the best of me. He’s always there to pull me back. We both are.”

I smiled, hearing the fondness in his voice. I could tell how much Grayson meant to him. He was Jack’s Evie. “Well, I can’t wait to meet him. He seems like an important part of who you are.”

“Yeah. I’m sure he will have a lot to say about you. He likes to embarrass me and push my buttons. But he would never do anything to seriously piss me off.”

After we finished eating and cleaning up, we shared a shower, where Jack proceeded to give me a hickey on my breast and two orgasms. I loved the way he made me feel small and weightless while he held me against the wall and fucked me, whispering a mixture of sweet and dirty words in my ear. I could get used to him showering with me every morning.

Once we got out, he left for his meeting with Grayson, and I remained standing in my kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee, and trying to decide what to do for the day. I leaned against the counter and stared out my back window, contemplating my options.

Christmas was coming up, and I still had some shopping to do. I only had to get gifts for Evie and Jameson in the past. And now I had Jack to add to my list. It felt good to have a boyfriend to buy for. I loved giving gifts. Now I just needed to figure out what to get him. In the meantime, I still needed to have a conversation with Jameson about what he said to Jack on Friday. The sooner we had the argument, the better, with Christmas right around the corner. Today we were meeting at King’s for our Sunday lunch, and I figured I would head there early to have it out before Evie arrived.